This invention relates to the treatment of metal machine surfaces and especially bearing and relatively-sliding surfaces. It is an object of the invention to achieve metal surfaces that are extremely hard-wearing and durable under conditions of arduous duty.
One example of a situation where extremely hard-wearing metal surfaces are required is the bores of cylinder liners for internal combustion engines. Many prior processes have been devised for the treatment of such surfaces to improve their quality and durability but nevertheless there is a strong need for a better process since cylinder liners in some instances have an undesirably short life.
It is a well known technique, in the treatment of machine parts, to bore or lap metal surfaces making use of an abrasive powder composed of hard grains or grit particles, e.g. silicon carbide particles. However, it has been considered as vital to remove all trace of the abrasive powder after such treatment since to leave any residue of these exceptionally hard particles would lead to rapid wear and deterioration of the treated surface in use.